Bitcoin recovered above $76,000 after an initial bout of volatility following the Federal Reserve’s decision to keep interest rates unchanged, putting the asset on track for a roughly 13% gain in April. The rebound came even as leverage was flushed out across the market, underscoring the uneasy balance between short-term macro reactions and longer-term institutional demand.
Fed Decision Triggers Sharp Swings
After three straight days of mild declines, bitcoin reversed course during the shortened trading week. Market data showed that the cryptocurrency briefly fell to around $75,000 after the Fed announcement before rebounding strongly. By 9:30 a.m. EST, it had reclaimed $76,000 and briefly challenged resistance near $76,500.
The move higher was far from smooth. Bitcoin touched an intraday high of $76,365, then quickly sold off to below $75,400 before launching a second recovery. Within roughly eight hours, it climbed again to an intraday peak of $76,528. Although it later eased back to around $76,300, it still finished the 24-hour period up 0.7%.
Liquidations Hit Leveraged Bulls
The volatility triggered notable liquidations. Over the past 24 hours, bitcoin long positions worth about $75 million were liquidated, compared with only around $17 million in short liquidations. Across the broader crypto market, leveraged long liquidations reached approximately $266 million, while short liquidations totaled about $89 million.
Even with that turbulence, bitcoin remained on pace to close April with a gain of roughly 13%, which would mark its first monthly advance of the year. The recovery also pushed bitcoin’s market capitalization to around $1.53 trillion.
ETF Inflows Offer Support, But Risks Remain
OKX SG CEO Gracie Lin said the post-Fed price swings should not overshadow what she described as a structural recovery over the last eight weeks. According to Lin, U.S. spot bitcoin ETFs attracted about $3.7 billion between late February and late April, marking the first sustained stretch of inflows in 2026 after four consecutive months of outflows.
She added that bitcoin had recently tested the $80,000 level despite macroeconomic and geopolitical shocks, suggesting that institutional participation remains a key support factor. In her view, allocators are watching whether institutional engagement continues, rather than focusing solely on any single Fed decision.
Still, caution persists. Sergei Gorev, chief risk officer at Youhodler, noted that bitcoin has already posted declines for two consecutive quarters, a pattern he called highly unusual. He warned that if historical post-Fed weakness repeats — especially given that eight of the last nine Fed meetings were followed by a downward pattern — bitcoin could fall below $70,000 with relative ease.